Saturday, July 19, 2008

Book review: Deadly Vintage

This is the fourth in Elaine Flinn's Molly Doyle series about an antiques dealer in Carmel, California. I've enjoyed all four of the books, and reading a new one feels like coming home. The characters are so comfortable to be around, because they are realistic and would be interesting people to know. It helps, too, that since reading the last one I've visited Carmel and can now picture the scenes in the book easier.

Molly has to deal with an unpleasant husband of a customer for her new decorating service, and when he is killed in front of many people she is a suspect. Meanwhile she is dealing with the possible loss of the niece, Emma, who lives with her and she has grown to love, and whose father now wants her with him.

Flinn deals well with that problem faced by all authors of cosy mystery series, which is how come the amateur sleuths keep coming across dead bodies? It becomes a plot point in that the father of her niece wonders if living with Molly isn't unhealthy for Emma given that Molly keeps getting involved in such unsavory business.

Another nice feature of the series is the set of characters around Molly, all of which add to the pleasure of the book. There's the police chief, the district attorney, the restaurant owner, and more. Makes for a nice ensemble cast, so to speak.